Greenhorns and Rivals: The Next Generation
by Mahone-chic-89
Summary: SEQUEL. Centers around Sarah Hansen, Edgar and Jack's daughter. The crews have gotten older and have retired, leaving their boats to their children. Will the past repeat itself, or will someone be willing to put it all behind them?
1. Chapter 1

THIS IS A SEQUEL

**THIS IS A SEQUEL!**

**If you have not read Greenhorns and Rivals (the first story) please go here to read it:** **/s/4159907/1/GreenhornsandRivals**

Chapter 1: New Beginnings

5 Years Later...

Sig, Edgar, Norman, Nick, Matt, and Jack had all retired from crab fishing.

Sig turned the control of the Northwestern over to Edgar and Jack's daughter, Sarah Hansen.

For the last four years of the rest of the Northwestern crew's career, Sarah had worked as a deckhand. She proved to be more than adequate and Sig began to train her in being a skipper of a Bering Sea crab boat. Now, at twenty-one years of age, Sarah Hansen was the only female skipper in the entire fleet.

She had the difficult task of choosing a brand new crew once the old Northwestern crew retired. Jake Anderson had stayed on board and by now had become a veteran of the Northwestern and the Bering Sea. At thirty-eight years of age, he was now the deckboss of the boat.

Sarah began to hang out at the local watering hole to look for potential crew members. She found three deckhands and one greenhorn that she decided to hire:

-Andrew Steadman: Thirty years old with over ten years experience on the Bering Sea

Blonde, blue-eyed, and well-built

-Jon Cooper: twenty-four years old with two years of crabbing experience

Brown hair, hazel eyes, and somewhat scraggily.

-Alexander Mahone: Thirty-nine year old veteran of the Bering Sea

Oldest on the boat and with the most experience

Brown hair, blue eyes, muscular build

-Amy Wagner: twenty-two year old greenhorn

Old friend of Sarah's from high school

Blonde, hazel eyes, with a lean build

The Maverick, Time Bandit, and the Cornelia Marie had also changed out crews during the past several years.

Phil Harris of the Cornelia Marie turned the control of his boat over to his two sons, Jake and Josh Harris. Now in their late thirties, the brothers often shared the positions of skipper and deckboss.

The Hillstrand brothers turned control of their boat over to an old family friend's son named Spike Walker. During the past couple of years, Spike proved to be a force to be reckoned with out on the Bering Sea and had become close friends with the new captain of the Maverick.

Blake Painter turned the skipper position on the Maverick over to his son, Rick Painter. Like his father, Rick was blonde, had blue eyes, and was just as driven and competitive as his dad.

The fleet still felt some animosity towards the Maverick, despite the fact that Blake was no longer the skipper. Many of the others skippers and deckhands assumed that Rick would follow in his father's footsteps. This often made Rick feel defensive and angry. He was more than ready to begin the King Crab season and to prove his worth on the Bering Sea. At twenty-one years old, Rick was a greenhorn captain with a tainted heritage and had a lot yet to prove to the rest of the Dutch Harbor fleet.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 1: New Beginnings

Chapter 2: Leaving Dutch

Sarah Hansen wove her way through a throng of deckhands that were chatting on the dock. She jogged the rest of the way down the dock and hurriedly climbed onto the Northwestern. The Fish and Game services in Alaska were about to open the King Crab season and she wanted to make sure that she and her crew left as soon as possible.

Climbing into the wheelhouse, Sarah began to turn on all her radios and other equipment. She whirled around and opened the door that led to a small second-story deck. She leaned over the rail and glanced around on the deck below her.

Andrew, Jon, Alex, and Jake were all on board but there was no sign of the greenhorn, Amy.

Jack sighed in frustration and ran a hand through her auburn hair. Her hazel eyes flashed in annoyance as she leaned back over the railing.

"Where's Amy?" she asked the crew below her.

"Haven't seen her!" replied Jake, looking around.

"She'd better be here if she knows what's good for her," muttered Alex under his breath, "I don't have the patience to deal with greenhorns showing up late."

Alexander Mahone was a middle-aged man with strikingly pointed features. His crystal blue eyes and weathered face made him look rugged, but no less attractive. His build was sturdy and rather muscular. He had years of crabbing experience and two years of experience on the Northwestern. He was the senior deckhand and a good friend of the Hansen family. When his boat went down during a storm, he had been the sole survivor. With no job and no where to go, Sarah Hansen convinced Sig to let him join the crew. He was tough and had a quick temper, but an expert fisherman.

Jake smiled at Alex and shook his head.

"Should've seen me when I was a greenhorn," he said, "I almost missed the boat for King Crab season once. Sig about throttled me."

"I'll bet!" said Andrew as he moved to begin untying the lines, "Sig never did have patience for that kind of stuff."

Andrew was also a rather good-looking man. At thirty years old, Andrew had ten years experience on the Bering Sea and worked for Sig for the last three years of his skippering career. Unlike Alex, Andrew was patient and tended to be a little more on the kind and forgiving side.

"I think I see her!" shouted Jon from the bow of the boat, "She's running down the dock!"

Jon was twenty-four years old and had one year of experience on the Northwestern. He was more scraggily than the other more burly deckhands. His build was similar to Jake's but what he lacked in brute strength, he made up for in spirit and quick wit. His brown hair and hazel eyes were strikingly similar to Edgar's. Many people often asked Edgar if Jon was his son. The two resembled one another and from a distance one could easily confuse the two.

Amy Wagner ran down the dock as fast as she could. Her heart was pumping with exertion as well as fear. Her first day on the job and she was late. This was not the way to go about doing things if she wanted to make a good impression on the other deckhands and on her child-hood friend and skipper, Sarah.

Amy was muscular, but lean. She had long, straight blonde hair and greenish-hazel eyes. She and Sarah had practically grown up together but were never really friends until high school. Amy was fascinated by the stories Sarah told her about her trips out to the Bering Sea with her parents and the rest of the legendary Northwestern crew. Amy was an adrenaline junkie and was always looking for a job that put her on the edge. Her parents told her that there was not enough money for college and Amy began to panic. She could not find a decent job with only a high school degree and turned to her friend for help. Sarah hired her as a greenhorn for the King Crab season and promised her that if she did well that she could come back for Opilio season in January.

"Well look what the cat dragged in!" shouted Sarah from the wheelhouse.

Amy looked up and gave Sarah an apologetic look as she climbed onto the boat.

"I'm so sorry!"

"Yeah, they all are!" replied Sarah with a smile, "You are lucky though! We were just about to pull away from the dock!"

Amy sighed with relief and threw her bag down below deck. As she walked back outside, Alex gave her a hard stare.

"I suggest that in the future you show up on time," he growled as he brushed past her.

Jake sneered and shook his head.

"Don't mind Alex," he said kindly, "He's just old."

"I'm only a year older than you, Jake!" retorted Alex as he began checking the ties on the pots.

"Are we fighting already?" asked Jon as he walked over to them, "Sheesh, we aren't even in the Bering Sea yet!"

Amy laughed lightly as she turned to help Alex with the pots. Jon watched her walk away with a thoughtful look on his face. Jake and Andrew snickered.

"Already got the hots for that one, eh?" asked Andrew.

Jon pushed him away and smiled sheepishly.

"You know what they say," continued Andrew, "Never mix business with pleasure!"

"I don't know," said Jake, "It worked for Edgar and Jack Hansen."

"Yeah but look what happened before that," retorted Andrew.

"What are you talking about?"

"He's referring to Blake Painter and the Maverick," said Alex as he walked by them, "Remember the stories about the rivalry they had and how Blake and Jack were kind of seeing each other?"

"Yeah and the Maverick's coming back," said Jake.

The crew whirled around and gave Jake shocked looks.

"Are you serious?" said Jon, "I thought that the Maverick was grounded permanently!"

"Not anymore," said Jake, "Blake was forced to quit after what he did to Jack that Opilio season. He closed down the business and put the boat on dry dock. But now he's giving the boat and the company to his son, Rick Painter. Apparently the Maverick's returning this Opilio season."

"That's not going to go over well," murmured Alex, "Most of the fleet still hates them. The boat I was on during that time wasn't even in on the rivalry and they still hated the Maverick for what they did and tried to do to Jack."

Jake shook his head and gazed out over the harbor as they began to make their way towards the Bering Sea.

"I don't know what's going to happen, but I can tell you this…it's not going to be good."

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**I'll try to update "The Elite" tonight too if I have time!**


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3: The Season Begins

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Chapter 3: The Season Begins

The crew of the Northwestern had been hard at work baiting and prepping the pots. Just as they prepared to go below deck for a much needed rest, Sarah's voice beckoned them from the intercom.

"Where do you all think you're going?" she asked, "Get back on deck! We're dropping the first string right now!"

The crew groaned and mumbled under their breath as they trudged back out onto the deck.

"A deckhand's work is never done!" said Jake, cheerfully.

Alex gave him an irritated look before he made his way over to the hydraulics. Jake was only a year younger than him, but acted like a teenager frequently. He had seemingly never-ending energy and was nearly always in a good mood. Alex was the opposite. He was sarcastic, matter-of-fact, and pessimistic. Sarah often told him that he reminded her of Uncle Sig.

Jon and Amy appeared from the galley and made their way over to the stack of pots to begin untying them. Andrew and Jake shared amused and knowing glances as they waited for Alex to lift the first pot onto the block.

"Wait!" exclaimed Jake just as the first pot about slid off the block.

Alex stopped the hydraulics and gave Jake a highly irritated look.

"Whatever it is, it better be important!" he shouted angrily.

"Of course it is! We forgot the ritual!"

Alex sneered and walked back to the bait area. Amy leaned over and whispered to Jon.

"What's he talking about?"

"The seasonal tradition," replied Jon, looking rather excited.

"What's the seasonal tradition?" asked Amy, still confused.

"The Biting of the Herring!"

Alex came back with two herring from the bait bucket. He handed one to Jake and took the other for himself. For a second, the constantly-bickering senior deckhands shared a moment of comradely as they prepared to perform the legendary Northwestern good-luck tradition.

"You ready?" asked Jake, giving Alex a confident glance. Jake had had many seasons under his belt as well as many bit off herring heads to speak of. Alex had only performed the ritual once and was not used to it quite yet.

"Only if you are," retorted Alex.

Jake smiled and lifted the herring to his mouth. At the same time, both senior deckhands bit down and bit the heads off the two herring. Jake chomped on his for a minute or two while Alex went straight for the rail and began to vomit in disgust.

Jake spit his fish head out and clapped Alex on the back.

"You alright there buddy?" he asked with a victorious smile.

Alex just shot him a look before he turned to go back to the hydraulics.

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Meanwhile on the Maverick…

Rick was busy trying to establish trust with his fellow deckhands. As the Maverick had pulled out of Dutch Harbor that morning, he had felt a thrill of excitement and fear course through his body. After what had happened in the past with the Maverick, he knew he had a lot to overcome and prove to not only his own crew, but to the entire Dutch Harbor fleet.

He was especially concerned with establishing a good relationship with the Northwestern. After their tainted past, he wanted to do something to change it. If nothing else, he simply wanted to make sure the feud did not start up again like it had several years ago.

He hesitated a moment, but decided to go ahead and pick up the radio to call Sarah Hansen on the Northwestern…

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Sarah gaped at her radio in shock when she saw who was calling in. She paused for a moment, unsure as to whether or not answering the call was the best idea. Taking a deep breath, she grabbed the radio without another thought.

"This is Sarah on fishing vessel Northwestern."

"Sarah? Hey, it's Rick Painter on fishing vessel Maverick."

Sarah paused again, unsure of what to say.

"Hi, Rick. Is everything okay?"

"Yeah, I just…just wanted to make sure that we were on the same page."

"Regarding what?"

"Regarding what happened between our parents a while back. I was hoping that we could maybe put that behind us and establish a better relationship? Maybe not a partnership, but at least a sort of alliance. You know…to prevent the feud from starting again?"

Sarah was not sure what to tell Rick. Part of her was screaming not to do it and to remember the past. But the other part of her was telling her that she had no right to blame Rick for his dad's mistakes. It was not his fault that his dad did what he did. Maybe the best thing to do would be to forget the past and move on.

"Until I have a good reason not to, I'm willing to give you the benefit of the doubt," said Sarah after a moment.

Rick sighed with relief and smiled to himself.

"Thank you, Sarah. I really appreciate it."

"Just don't ruin it," said Sarah with a light-hearted tone.

"Yeah, I won't. Don't worry."

Sarah smiled as a thought entered her mind.

"Hey, Rick? You want to have a little competition?"

"A competition? Like what?"

"Whoever has the largest pot of crab wins? You're on your honor…I hope that means something."

"It does, I promise."

"Good, then are you in or out, Painter?"

"Oh, you're on Hansen!"

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	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4:

**Okay, I'm going to start getting some POV's of the other boats too. I think it'd be a nice change of pace to know what's going on with the other boats too. **

**Thanks for reviewing!!**

Chapter 4: Radio Transmissions

A couple weeks later, the Northwestern was hauling in pots of King Crab averaging about 85 crab per pot.

Up in the wheelhouse, Sarah smiled to herself. She had studied her uncle's maps and charts from all the years of King Crab fishing and followed her Norwegian instincts to lead them to the Bering Sea gold. She felt a rush of pride at her heritage and watched as the sun rose over the water, casting its warm rays on the cold gray sea.

Suddenly, the radio began to bleep as a call came in. She pivoted in her captain's chair to answer it.

"This is Sarah Hansen on the Northwestern, who is this?"

"Oh, just the best father in the whole world."

Sarah beamed as she recognized Edgar's voice.

"Dad! You're in town?" she exclaimed in surprise.

"Yeah, your mother and I figured we'd come spend a couple weeks here for old-times sake. You know, visit the bar where we danced and the place we first kissed? Romantic junk like that. And we figured we'd stay to see you bring our boat back home safely."

Sarah smiled and rolled her eyes.

"Thanks, dad," she said sarcastically, "It's good to know you have so much confidence in me."

Edgar laughed, "It's not you I'm worried about. It's those waves I'm worried about. How's the boat handling?"

"Everything's fine, dad. I promise. We're hauling 85 to 100 crabs per pot right now. We're gonna unload this gear and place it right back. This is definitely a hot spot."

"I'm proud of you kiddo," said Edgar with affection in his voice, "You've made us all proud. You've managed to maintain the dignity of the Hansen name."

"Thanks, Dad," said Sarah, "Is mom there? I wanted to say hi to her."

"Yeah, she's right here. Love you, kiddo."

"Love you too, Dad," replied Sarah as she waited for her mom to come on the line.

"Hey, honey," said Jack Hansen, "How are you?"

"I'm good," said Sarah, "Just told Dad that we are pulling in some pretty heavy pots right now. Looks like we'll end on time…maybe even earlier than expected."

"That's great news!" exclaimed Jack happily, "I'm proud of you, sweetheart."

"Thanks," said Sarah, "I'm trying."

"And it shows. So, have you met any guys while you've been in Dutch Harbor?"

Sarah rolled her eyes in exasperation. Jack was always asking her about boys and when she was finally going to start dating. Sarah had never had a real boyfriend. She was too independent for most guys.

"No, I haven't met any but I have talked to one on the radio."

"Oh? Who?"

Sarah hesitated for a moment, wondering what she should tell her mom.

"His name's Rick. He and I are having a competition to see who pulls the most crab in a single string."

Jack laughed, "We used to have competitions like that all the time when I was a deckhand. What boat is he on?"

Sarah swallowed nervously and took a deep breath before she replied.

"Um…okay, before you say anything, just know that things are different now. It's not the same as it used to be…"

"What are you talking about?" asked Jack, sounding confused and suddenly concerned.

"Rick…Rick is the captain of the Maverick. He's…he's Blake Painter's son."

There was silence for a full minute before Jack replied.

"His _son_?" asked Jack in astonishment, "Blake retired?"

"Yeah," said Sarah, uneasily, "He gave the boat to Rick."

Jack sighed.

"Sarah…you know how we feel about them and you know what happened between the Northwestern and the Maverick. You know what they did and tried to do to me."

"Yeah, Mom, I do. But it's different now. Rick's not like his dad. He sounds like he really wants the rivalry to stop."

"That's what Blake told me a long time ago," said Jack, "He and I had the same kind of conversation at the bar the day we met."

"I don't want to judge him based on his father's actions," retorted Sarah, "It's not fair to him. He deserves the benefit of the doubt."

"I don't know if I like you talking to him, Sarah."

"Mom, I'm an adult! I think I'm capable of making my own decisions. I'm running a crab boat for crying out loud. If I can do that, I can handle Rick Painter."

"I just don't want you to make the same mistakes I did," said Jack, relenting slightly.

"I know, Mom. And I appreciate that, but I have to make my own decisions and learn from my own mistakes. That's the only way I _can_ learn. I'm stubborn just like you and dad."

Jack sneered, "Sometimes I think you're _more_ stubborn than us."

Sarah laughed slightly.

"Okay, honey," said Jack, "Just…just be careful, okay? At least promise me that."

"I promise Mom…I'll be careful."

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Later that day on the Cornelia Marie…

Josh Harris was taking the position of skipper while his younger brother, Jake Harris, was on deck as the deckboss for this string of pots. The brothers changed these two positions frequently and worked rather well together.

Josh had just gotten off the radio with Sarah Hansen. He was slightly irritated that they were pulling up full pots, while the Cornelia Marie was literally pulling empty ones.

The Cornelia Marie was a long time friend of the Northwestern. Sig and Phil were good friends and shared fishing spots with one another quite often. Sarah had also made friends with Phil's two sons while she was a deckhand and maintained that friendship as both she and the brothers elevated their positions to skippers of their boats.

Sarah had been more than willing to tell Josh where she was currently fishing. She urged him to go further south to where she was and to drop pots a quarter of a mile away from hers. They had placed tester pots there and those were coming up with over one-hundred crab per pot. Josh did not need to be told twice and promptly began to head south in the direction of the Northwestern.

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Meanwhile, on the Time Bandit…

Spike Walker was in the wheelhouse planning the next spot to drop pots. He was a long-time friend of the Hillstrand brothers and had been asked to take the position of skipper when they had retired.

Once Spike chose his location about fifty miles northwest and plotted his course, he picked up the radio to call his best friend, Rick Painter.

The two boats had maintained their alliance since the old days when it was Time Bandit and Maverick vs. Cornelia Marie and Northwestern, much in the same way as the Cornelia Marie and Northwestern maintained their good relations.

"Hey, Rick. You there?" asked Spike.

"Hey Spike! What's up man?" asked Rick, enthusiastically.

"Not much, just plotting some new courses. What about you? Have you heard any good gossip on hot spots?"

"I heard a few minutes ago on the radio that there's a rumor going around about the Northwestern. Apparently their hauling in some seriously packed pots. I talked to Sarah Hansen on the radio this morning but she didn't mention anything in particular. We did however, agree to a little competition to see who pulls the largest string."

"You talked with Hansen?" asked Spike, in shock, "What are you doing talking to her?"

Rick tried to hold back his irritation as he replied.

"Just talking. I'm not doing the whole rivalry thing. It's stupid."

"I don't trust them."

"Why not? The Hansen's never did anything wrong. It was my dad, remember?"

"Yeah, but still man…it is what it is. And it's not going to change so I'd just end this quietly if I were you."

"And why should I?" retorted Rick, growing angry, "The least I can do is destroy this thing my father and the captain before him started. It's not right and I'm not going to let this thing continue as long as I'm skipper of this boat!"

Spike sighed and shook his head.

"Whatever you want man, but I'm telling you, this thing? It's not ending. It's been a rivalry for way too long. It's literally in our blood now. It's too late to do anything to change it."

"I refuse to believe that," snapped Rick as he ended the transmission.

But deep down he wondered if Spike was right. Had this rivalry gone on for too long? Was it too serious for people to be able to forget and to put behind them?

He sighed and glanced out his window and watched the sun as it set below the horizon. Then a feeling of determination filled him. No matter what others said, he was going to do what it took to end it. Even if he was the only one willing to do so…

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	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5: Return to Dutch

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**Erin and Erica: Since you guys don't have accounts, I can't send you a message thanking you for reviewing, so I'll do it here! Thank you guys so much for sticking with this story!! I REALLY appreciate it!!**

Chapter 5: Return to Dutch

The King Crab fishing season had gone well for the majority of the fleet. In less than a month, most of the boats had filled their quotas and were heading back to Dutch Harbor for offloading and a good one month break before Opilio season began.

The Maverick and the Northwestern were the first two boats to arrive back at the docks. After offloading, the Northwestern crew each received seventy-five thousand dollars each. It was a record –breaking season and Sarah Hansen could not stop smiling with pride.

She had been very worried about doing well her first time out at sea as skipper, but she had proven herself a force to be reckoned with.

"Hey, captain!" shouted Jake with a smile on his face as Sarah climbed down from the wheelhouse, "Nice job!"

Sarah smiled and gave her old friend a hug.

"Thanks, Jake," she said while he finished tying off the last line, "I really appreciate that."

Jake shook his head, "Don't thank me…you're the one that led us to the crab. We're going to go home as rich me after Opilio season!"

Sarah leaned over and knocked on the wooden deck of the Northwestern, "Don't jinx us Jake!"

Jake laughed, "Oh yeah…sorry!"

Sarah rolled her eyes and shook her head as she leapt off the boat and onto the dock.

"I'm going to the bar," she said, "I'll be back later."

As Sarah walked down the dock, she passed the Maverick. Rick Painter was just coming out of the wheelhouse when he spotted her.

"Hey!" he called as he waved to her.

Sarah smiled and waved back. Rick quickly leapt off his boat and ran over to her.

"You going to the bar?" he asked her.

"Yeah, you?"

"Only if you are."

Sarah smiled. As they strode into the bar, Rick ordered a beer for the two of them.

"So, what was your largest string?" asked Sarah with a cunning smile.

Rick narrowed his eyes at her.

"Well rumor has it that the Northwestern pulled a record season," he said, sipping his beer.

Sarah smiled and gave him a scrutinizing look, "We did, but I heard that the Maverick did the same."

Rick nodded, "Yeah…we did."

Sarah grabbed a tablet that was sitting by the register and wrote down a number on it.

"Okay," she said with a smile, "Now write down your number."

Rick gave her a look, but complied.

"Okay, what'd you get?" she asked.

Rick held up the piece of paper. Sarah gave a little leap and cry of victory.

"I got twenty more than you!" she exclaimed.

Rick gave her a shocked look, "You only beat me by twenty?! So I'm losing fifty bucks over twenty stupid crabs?"

Sarah laughed and held out her hand.

"I'll make you a deal," said Rick with a scheming look on his face.

Sarah sighed and frowned at him.

"What?"

"How about I take you out to dinner and we call it even?"

Sarah smiled and nodded in agreement.

"Deal."

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Later that evening, Rick walked Sarah down the dock back to her boat. They had gone out to an expensive seafood restaurant and had talked for a couple of hours. They discussed the rivalry and the past. They agreed to let it go and to try and move on.

"You know what?" asked Rick as they strolled down the dock.

"What?" asked Sarah, hugging her parka closer to her as a chilly breeze blew over them from the water.

"I called my dad before we left tonight and told him what I was doing."

Sarah gave him a shocked look.

"Why?"

Rick shrugged, "I like to be upfront with him. It avoids worse problems later on, you know? Better to be honest than to lie and for him to find out later."

Sarah nodded in understanding.

"So what'd he say?"

Rick sighed, "He was definitely not happy about it. He wants to keep the rivalry. I guess he's still angry about the past."

"I told my mom about the competition we were having," said Sarah, "She didn't like it either."

"It's so stupid!" exclaimed Rick, "It's all the past, right? So why should their problems affect us?"

"That's what I said," replied Sarah, "But they don't seem to listen."

"Spike on the Time Bandit wasn't happy about it either," murmured Rick, "He's my best friend too. Did you tell Josh and Jake Harris yet?"

"About putting the feud aside? No…not yet. I'm waiting for a good time to tell them. They're good friends of mine so I hope they don't get too upset about it."

"Does your crew know?" asked Rick.

"No…I don't know when I'll tell _them_," she said with a sigh, "I'm afraid they'd pull a mutiny or something."

Rick laughed slightly at that.

"I don't think they will. I talked to Jake Anderson earlier today when you went back to the boat. He was nice enough. He certainly respects you."

Sarah nodded and paused as they reached the Northwestern at the end of the dock.

"So, I'll see you around sometime?" asked Rick.

"Definitely," said Sarah with a smile.

She was suddenly struck by how attractive Rick was. He was blonde and had blue eyes just like his dad. She could tell by the way his clothes fit him that he was well-built too. His smile made her stomach flip over and her heart skip a beat.

Suddenly, Rick leaned over and gave her a quick kiss.

"Goodnight," he murmured as he turned to leave.

Sarah stood on the dock for a moment, smiling to herself. Then she wondered what would happen if she and Rick began to hang out more. Would her crew get upset? What about the other boats and skippers? She sighed and turned to climb back onto the Northwestern. She hoped that her new-found relationship with Rick would not affect her fishing career and her other relationships.

With a final glance out over the water, Sarah realized that she would just have to take one day at a time. Sighing, she turned and disappeared down into the belly of the Northwestern.

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	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6: Feud

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Chapter 6: In-Fighting

"So where were you last night?" asked Alex as Sarah climbed down into the galley early the next morning.

"I was at the Elbow Room," she said giving Alex a quick glance.

"Mmm hmm," murmured Andrew as he gave a knowing glance at Alex.

Sarah felt a twinge of uneasiness as she poured her coffee beside the sink. Just then, Jon and Amy strolled into the galley.

"And where were you two last night?" demanded Alex, looking even more irritated than usual.

Amy and Jon exchanged nervous glances.

"We just went into town," muttered Jon as he walked past the galley table and began to pour himself a cup of coffee.

Amy stood near the doorway, looking very uncomfortable.

Andrew and Alex, who were sitting behind the table, gave each other frustrated and curious glances.

Finally, Alex could not hold back his anger any longer. He slammed his coffee mug on the table eyes flashing with fury.

"That's it!" he exclaimed as he stood up, "No more secrets! We're supposed to be a team and keeping secrets from one another is the best way to cause conflict. We're going back out to sea in a month and the last thing we need is unnecessary drama on the boat. So why don't the three of you stop being stupid and tell us the truth!"

Everyone froze in shock. Deckhands usually did not challenge their captains so openly like that.

Sarah swallowed nervously and felt a flash of embarrassment. She was still a greenhorn-skipper and she could not control her own crew. She should have been aware of the fact that Jon and Amy had left the boat last night. It was her job to keep track of her crew, but instead of doing her job, she had been out with Rick Painter all night.

"Okay, fine," she snapped, growing angry at herself and at Alex, "I was at the Elbow Room for awhile yesterday talking with Rick Painter. He asked me to go to dinner with him and I did. That's what I was doing last night, not like it's really any of your business."

The rest of the crew gaped in surprise.

"Rick _Painter_?" exclaimed Andrew, "What were you doing with _him_?"

"We were just talking, nothing happened," said Sarah, defensively.

Alex sneered in open disgust.

"So instead of staying here with her crew and doing what she's supposed to, our great captain was out with the Northwestern's rival?" said Alex, angrily, "You could jeopardize everything by befriending them!"

"That's not true!" shouted Sarah, despite herself, "Rick is nothing like his father and I did nothing wrong!"

"Says you!" argued Alex, "How do you know he won't stab you in the back like his dad did to your mother? What if you tell him more than you should about the Northwestern and he turns it around on you? Then, because of your poor decision, an entire season could be blown!"

"You're overreacting, Alex," snapped Sarah, "And last time I checked, I'm the skipper of this boat! Not some deckhand you can order around. You want to be deckboss like Jake? Then you go out there and do your job instead of sitting on your rear and criticizing your captain!"

Alex's jaw tightened in anger. He sneered again in disgust just as Jake walked into the galley.

"I finished tying off those…" Jake paused when he saw the looks on everyone's faces, "Whoa…what'd I miss?"

"Just our captain turning traitor," sneered Alex.

Sarah shot him a furious look before she turned to answer Jake.

"I'll tell you later, Jake," she promised, "Now I'd like to know where you two went last night."

Jon and Amy instantly began to fidget awkwardly.

"We just went into town for some fun," said Jon, blushing with embarrassment.

"Great," said Andrew, "More drama to put on the boat."

Alex gave Andrew a look of approval and nodded his agreement.

"From now on you need to tell me or Jake when you leave the boat, okay?" said Sarah.

Amy and Jon nodded before they fled back out of the galley and out onto the deck.

"And what about you?" challenged Alex, "You going to tell us when you decide to abandon the boat and hang out with those Maverick backstabbers?"

Jake's eyes widened in surprise and he gave Sarah a shocked and curious look.

Sarah took a deep breath, eyes glowing with anger.

"I'll tell Jake, is that good enough for you?" she said, staring Alex down.

Alex just sneered, shook his head, and left the galley. Andrew stood to follow him and gave Sarah an upset and disappointed look.

Once they were gone, Jake went over to her and gave her a concerned look.

"What in the world happened?" he demanded.

Sarah told him everything that had happened last night and that morning before he walked into the galley.

Jake frowned and looked away when she had finished.

"So do you not trust me either?" asked Sarah, bitterly.

"No, it's not that," said Jake, "I don't want to see you get hurt like your mom did when Blake turned his back on her. She was lucky though, she had Edgar there and he helped her through it."

Sarah nodded, but gave him a defiant look.

"But I won't judge him based on his father's actions," she said, determinedly, "It wouldn't be right. He's different, I can tell. I want to give him the benefit of the doubt."

Jake smiled and shook his head.

"You're exactly like them," he murmured.

"Like who?"

"Your parents…stubborn and hard-headed."

Sarah smiled and laughed slightly. She ran a hand through her hair and sighed.

"I don't know what to do, Jake," she murmured, "It's like no matter what I chose to do, someone's going to get hurt."

"Well you can't please everybody," said Jake, "You have to follow your heart, but don't forget to use your mind too. Just tread carefully, okay?"

"I will," said Sarah as she gave Jake a hug, "Thanks."

Jake smiled, "No, problem. Now let's forget about this for now and get to work, okay?"

Sarah nodded and followed Jake back out onto the deck of the Northwestern.

**NOTE: Jake and Sarah won't get together…I know it kind of sounded like that in this chapter, but remember that Jake is only a few years younger than her father, so that'd be kind of weird…She views him as more of an older brother…just FYI… **

**STORIES NOTE: If you haven't read it yet, on the "Deadliest Catch Oneshots Series" I posted a new short chapter about Sarah growing up with her parents. Just a little insight into the kind of person Sarah is.**

**Also, I started a new story about vampires and I'm using Blake Painter's character as the main character in the story…its on and it's under the same username that I have for . **

**PLEASE REVIEW!!**


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7: A New Season Dawns

Chapter 7: A New Season Dawns

The Cornelia Marie had been busy repairing and buying new gear that month. The Harris brothers wanted to be well-prepared for the dangerous Opilio season that started in three days.

Sarah Hansen had been in town that day talking with other skippers and buying some last minute goods for the Northwestern crew. After dropping the supplies in the boat, she decided to go for a walk down the docks. She paused when she came across the Cornelia Marie. She hesitated for a moment, and then climbed aboard.

"Anyone here?" she called as she walked down the deck towards the wheelhouse.

"Who wants to know?" snapped an irritable deckhand.

"The captain of the Northwestern," answered Sarah as she stopped beside the door that led down to the galley.

The deckhand whirled around, guilt and fear in his eyes.

"Oh, I'm sorry," he mumbled, "Um…do you want to talk with the skippers?"

Sarah smiled slightly, "That'd be great. Where are they?"

"In the wheelhouse," answered the sheepish-looking deckhand, "They're plotting our course for later this week."

"Thanks," said Sarah as she climbed the stairs that led up into the rather large wheelhouse.

As she walked inside she saw the brothers standing over a map and mumbling to one another. She cleared her throat to get their attention.

"Hey!" exclaimed Josh, "Look who's here!"

"Hey, Sarah," said Jake, "What's going on?"

"Not much…just wanted to stop by and see how you guys were doing."

Jake and Josh exchanged knowing glances.

"Not much?" repeated Josh, "So dating the captain of the Maverick is 'not much'?"

Sarah sighed and looked away for a moment. During the month they had off, she and Rick continued to see each other, much to her crew's disgust. She had tried her best to explain her reasoning to Andrew and Alex, but they did not want to hear a word of it. Jake Anderson had been more understanding, but still disapproved of the whole thing. Amy and Jon were too into each other to pay her any mind. Her parents, Edgar and Jack, completely disapproved. She tried to explain it to them too and they tried to be understanding, but they still were not happy about it.

Sarah came to the realization that she could not make everyone happy. She had listened to Jake and thought about it for a long time and decided to follow her heart. Rick made her happy…they made each other happy. He was sweet and kind and completley different from what the others had said about him and his father.

"I know it's none of our business," said Josh, "But your crew can't be too happy about it…am I right?"

Sarah sighed, "You're dead on, unfortunately. They don't seem to understand that the son is not the father."

"Yeah," said Jake, "Well, I'm on your side as always! I think what you and Rick do is your business and I agree that judging him based on Blake is wrong."

Sarah smiled appreciatively.

"Just be careful," warned Josh.

Sarah sighed in exasperation.

"It's like I have a horde of big brothers out here!" she exclaimed with a smile of amusement, "All of you keep telling me to be careful!"

Josh grinned and put her into a head lock.

"Well maybe you should try taking our advice?"

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Meanwhile, on the Maverick…

"So, Rick?" asked the deckboss, "You still hanging out with that Northwestern chic?"

Rick grimaced and gave the deckboss an irritated look.

"Yeah…if that's alright with you," he snarled as he began to walk up the stairs to the wheelhouse.

"Hey, I'm just sayin," retorted the man, "I wonder what you dad would think about this?"

Rick froze in mid-step. He had not seen his dad since he was eighteen and moved out. His dad had not changed much since he took Jack Hansen hostage all those years ago. He had become an almost constant drunk and barraged Rick with curses and insults. Rick grew up feeling like his dad thought he was a failure and that had left an emotional scare that would never truly go away.

"Frankly, Rob," snapped Rick, "I really could care less!"

"Well he did leave the boat to you," chided Rob, "Wouldn't you think he'd expect you to maintain the old ways…you know, just as he left them?"

Rick glared down at the deckboss with fury in his eyes.

"You mean continue the rivalry and hurt other Northwestern deckhands?" he said angrily, "Sorry, Rob, but I'm not my father nor will I ever be. This is my boat now so we are going to go by my rules, got it? I don't care what my dad said…that doesn't matter anymore. Things have changed and if you don't like it, you're welcome to leave!"

With that, Rick walked into the wheelhouse and slammed the door behind him. He put his head in his hands and wiped his tired, blood-shot eyes.

Suddenly, the radio above him began to beep.

"Attention all Bering Sea Fishing Vessels," said a male voice, "This is the official Alaskan Fish and Game Service. The opilio crab season will be opening within the hour. Due to bad weather conditions threatening the area, we recommend that skippers use caution in decided when to leave port."

Rick gaped in surprise. The opilio season was not supposed to begin for another two days! He grabbed the radio and began to talk to his deckhands below him.

"Guys, we gotta move and we gotta move now!" he shouted, "The season's opening in less than an hour! Secure those pots and get below deck, now!"

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Meanwhile, on the Northwestern…

Sarah had just received the call regarding the opening of the season and the warning of the weather to come.

She called the deckhands up to the wheelhouse to discuss the situation with them.

"I wanted to talk to you guys about the weather conditions," said Sarah once everyone had gathered around her.

Alex had his usual displeased look on his face and frowned irritably. Jon and Amy exchanged concerned looks, each one worried about the other. Andrew shot his new friend Alex a look and mimicked his disapproving stance. Jake remained quietly neutral and attentively listened to his captain.

"They're predicting thirty-five to forty-foot swells by mid-day tomorrow," continued Sarah, "We can head out now before the storm hits or we can stay here and let it blow over. If we do that though, we'll be behind and risk not catching our quota. But I thought I'd get your opinions first before I make the final decision."

"I'll give you my opinion on something else if you'd like," sneered Alex.

Sarah shot him a glare but chose to ignore his comment.

"I think we should go for it," said Jake, "We've had worse. And we don't want to be behind the other boats and miss our quota."

"But wouldn't it be safer to stay in harbor?" asked Jon, hesitantly.

"I think we should go too," said Amy, eliciting a surprised glance from her boyfriend, Jon, "I mean why not?" she reasoned, "I bet that the others are going out too."

"Well, I guess that settles it," said Sarah, "We're leaving. Check the ties and get below deck! It's gonna be a bumpy ride!"

**PLEASE REVIEW!!**


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter 8:

Chapter 8: Overboard 

The Northwestern plowed through the choppy Bering Sea. In less than twenty-four hours, the waves had begun to rise to over twenty foot swells. The sea spray smacked the deckhands in their faces and made walking on deck a balancing act.

Sarah chewed her bottom lip in frustration and uncertainty. The weather reports seemed to grow worse and worse as the hours ticked away. She felt something inside her screaming to turn back. Her Norwegian instincts were kicking in and she battled against them, knowing that turning back would mean a delayed start for the Northwestern and money and time down the drain.

She hesitated a moment before she picked up the radio and called Rick on the Maverick.

"Hey, Rick?" she said, "You there? It's Sarah."

"Hey!" said Rick, sounding happy to hear her voice, "What's going on?"

"The forecast isn't looking too good and I'm beginning to second guess staying out here. Where are you guys? Did you leave Dutch yet?"

"Yeah, we left an hour after you did. We're actually headed your way to drop our first string. We're staying out here and risking it. We can't afford to waste all of our fuel heading back to Dutch for a day then coming back out another day."

Sarah sighed in resignation but soon made up her mind.

"Alright," she said with a determined voice, "We'll stay out here so long as you guys watch our backs and we'll watch yours."

"No problem. We'll be within sight of you in a few minutes."

Sarah hung up the radio and turned to look back down at her crew. They were just beginning to launch the first pot over the side of the boat.

"Don't forget the tradition!" yelled Sarah over the intercom.

Alex and Jake grabbed a herring each and bit off the heads. They chewed on them for a minute while the rest of the crew tried to not lose their breakfast over the railing.

Sarah laughed at the spectacle and watched as the first pot slid off the boat and into the Bering Sea.

DCDCDCDCDCDCDCDCDCDCDCDCDCDCDCDCDCDCDCDCDCDCDCDCDC

A few minutes later, the Maverick came within view of the Northwestern. They were a few yards away dropping their first string.

"Well what do you know?" said Alex, obviously displeased, "Isn't it a coincidence that the _Maverick _is fishing alongside us? Now I wonder why they'd do a thing like that?"

"Shut up, Alex," snapped Jake, "That's getting old."

"So is our skipper dating that traitor!" retorted Andrew, speaking up for his best-buddy Alex.

"He's not a traitor!" snapped Amy, in defense of her friend, "You can't judge him for what his dad did! That's not right. If you judged me by what my dad has done, you'd have a completely different view of me!"

The deckhands paused to give her a curious look.

"My dad was a drunk," said Amy, looking away awkwardly, "He got into drugs too and got really messed up. He cheated on my mom and walked out on us. If you judged me by his actions, then you would all hate me. So it's the same with Rick. Just because his dad was a jerk, doesn't mean his son's the same way."

The deck grew quiet and still for a moment.

"What do you all think you're doing?" snapped Sarah from the wheelhouse, "Are we gossiping or working? Because it sure doesn't look like work to me, but that's just from where I'm standing."

Jake smirked, "Sometimes I think she sounds more like Sig than Edgar."

Alex muttered something under his breath as he leaned over the rail. Just then, a massive, twenty-five foot wave rose up from behind them.

"Wave!" screamed Sarah over the intercom.

But it was too late. The deckhands did not have enough warning. They all hit the deck and dove for cover under anything they could find. Alex whirled around only to come face to face with the towering wave. It hit him like a semi-truck and he felt himself get ripped off the railing and thrown off the boat. As he hit the freezing cold Bering Sea water, he felt himself gulp with shock at the bitter cold. His breathing became rapid and he floundered helplessly as the next wave pushed him further away from the boat.

"Alex!" shouted Jon, "Alex is overboard!"

"Man overboard!" shouted Jake as Sarah whirled around in the wheelhouse to count her deckhands. Sure enough, Alex was drifting rapidly away from them in the rising seas.

"Get your survival suits on and get a life ring!" shouted Sarah, voice high with fear, "I'm turning the boat around to get him! You need to be ready to go in after him if we have to!"

Sarah switched over to the main radio and began to shout desperately into it.

"This is Sarah Hansen on the Northwestern! We have a man overboard, I repeat, we have a man overboard!"

On the Maverick, Rick picked up the transmission and whirled around to look out his wheelhouse windows. The waves were sending Alex straight for his boat.

"Guys!" screamed Rick into the intercom, "We got a man overboard on the Northwestern! He's heading right for us! Someone get on the rail with a life ring, now!"

The deckhands scrambled and managed to grab a life ring. They tossed it over the rail and it landed a foot away from Alex. Alex was growing increasingly numb from his bitterly cold swim and barely managed to latch onto the life ring. The deckhands reeled him in and pulled him onto the Maverick.

Sarah watched from her place in the wheelhouse and breathed a sigh of relief as she saw Alex go onto the Maverick.

"The Maverick got him!" she announced to her crew, "They got him!"

She paused and pulled the radio away from her for a moment.

"I hope he's going to be okay…"

**PLEASE REVIEW!!**

**Hey guys! I can't remember if I told you or not, but I now have an account on : ****/mahonechic89**

**I'm working on two stories there if you want to check them out!**

**Thanks for all the reviews! **

**Erin and Erica, thanks again for reviewing! I know I can't reply to your reviews since you don't have accounts, but I still like to let you know how much I appreciate you sticking with the story!!**

**NOTE: Jane Minatti just posted a new story! It's the Ultimate Showdown one that she's revamping. It sounds like it's gonna be good!!**

**I'll update ASAP, but it is the last week of school for me so it's pretty crazy right now…but if I get any more free time, you all know I'll be typing away!**


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter 9: Rescue

Chapter 9: Rescue

Rich watched tensely as the deckhands hauled Alex over the rail and onto the Maverick deck. The man was hypothermic and desperately needed to get out of his wet clothes as soon as possible.

The deckhands dragged Alex below deck to begin drying and warming him up. Just then, a bleeping noise came from the radio.

"This is Rick on the Maverick," he said into the radio.

"Rick? It's Sarah!" shouted Sarah frantically, "You got him! Is he okay? What's his status?"

"I don't know yet," replied Rick, also sounding worried, "But I'll let you know the second I find out."

"Thanks, Rick," murmured Sarah, genuinely, "We owe you."

"No you don't" he protested, "I'd do anything for you, you know that."

Sarah smiled to herself and turned to deal with her frustrated and worried crew.

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"What's going on?" demanded Andrew, concern for his best friend making him even more edgy than usual.

"Sarah will tell us when she finds out," replied Jake, sensibly as he gazed over at the Maverick.

Andrew sneered and glared daggers at the Maverick.

"You should be appreciative of them you know," murmured Jon.

"And why, pray tell?" snapped Andrew.

"Oh, I don't know," said Jon, growing angry, "Maybe because if it wasn't for them, your little friend would be at the bottom of the Bering Sea!"

"Maybe you should…" Andrew's sharp reply was cut off as Sarah emerged from the wheelhouse.

She stood gazing over the rail with her arms folded and an irritated look on her face.

"So what's going on?" snarled Andrew, "You gonna stand there or are you gonna tell us what happened?"

Jon gave Andrew a quick warning glance. Challenging the captain was never a very good idea. Amy frowned in disapproval but waited patiently for her best friend's reply.

"He's fine," said Sarah, curtly, "Thanks to the Maverick, he'll be fine."

Andrew sneered again, "Whatever."

Jake shook his head in exasperation.

"You know what?" he said, suddenly growing angry, "Ever since you and Alex became such good friends, your attitude's changed completely. Maybe you need to take the time to check your feelings at the door before you come out on deck?"

"Why don't you mind your own freakin' business?" snapped Andrew.

"This _is_ my business you moron!" retorted Jake as he drew closer to Andrew, "In case you've forgotten, Alex isn't the deckboss, I am! And it's my job to keep people like you in line! So when I say something, you listen, got it?"

"Give me one good reason why I should!"

Jake did not hesitate a moment longer. With a growl of anger, he leapt at Andrew, knocking him down. The two writhed together on the ground, punching and kicking and yelling like mad men.

"Hey!" shouted Sarah, "Knock it off!"

Jon tried to jump in to separate the two men, but managed to get punched in the eye by Andrew. Amy cried out in fear and anger and rushed over to Jon.

Sarah leapt over the railing beside the wheelhouse and landed cat-like on her feet. She quickly stepped in-between the two battling men and forced them apart.

"I said _stop_!" she screamed furiously.

The two deckhands obeyed, but still glared at each other, gasping for breath. Andrew had a bloody nose and Jake's eye looked like it was swelling quickly.

"Are you both insane!?" exclaimed Sarah after a moment, "Fighting on deck is just another way to get yourselves killed! You have a problem, talk it out or take the fight back to the dock with you! Got it?"

Jake nodded, suddenly feeling slightly ashamed that he had let Andrew get to him like that. Andrew nodded curtly, but did not appear to be sorry at all. In fact, he looked like he could have flown at Jake again if he wanted to.

Sarah glanced between the two seething men one last time before she turned to climb back up to the wheelhouse. She slammed the door shut angrily and sat down in the captain's chair.

"This is getting _way_ out of hand…"

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Back on the Maverick…

"Hey, Rick?" called a deckhand, "The Northwestern guy wants to see you for a minute!"

Rick stood up from his captain's chair in the wheelhouse and climbed down the stairs into the galley. He nodded to his deckboss and told him to take the wheel for a moment. Rick walked over to where Alex was sitting behind the galley table wrapped up in warm blankets. He looked like he was still in shock, but he was conscious.

"How you holding up there, tough guy?" asked Rick, in a friendly voice as he slid in beside Alex.

"I'm okay…thanks to you," said Alex quietly, "I appreciate what you and your crew did. You didn't have to do that."

"Of course we did!" exclaimed Rick in surprise, "What else would we have done? Watched you drown?"

Alex smirked slightly and glanced away.

"Well, up until now I didn't care much for you guys," admitted Alex.

Rick smiled slightly and nodded, "Sarah told me."

Alex gave him a quick glance. Rick held up his hand.

"Now, don't get angry. We talk a lot, yes, but we don't share boat secrets. Trust me, we know what we're doing."

Alex grunted and looked down at his cup of coffee.

"Thanks again," he murmured, "I'd be a dead man if it wasn't for you."

Rick smiled again and slapped Alex on the back.

"Anytime, my man, anytime!"

DCDCDCDCDCDCDCDCDCDCDCDC

Back on the Northwestern…

A couple of hours had gone by and Sarah had decided to go drop a string of pots about fifty miles away from their current location.

The Coast Guard was on their way to pick up Alex from the Maverick and bring him back to Dutch Harbor. When the Northwestern went to offload, they could pick him back up at the dock.

The crew was below deck getting some much needed rest and food. Andrew headed straight for his bunk while Jon, Amy, and Jake stayed in the galley.

Jake was standing and leaning over something on the counter near the sink. Jon raised an eyebrow in curiosity.

"What are you doing?" he asked.

"Writing something," mumbled Jake as he stood and held up a piece of cardboard. He walked over to the door that led out to the deck and stuck the sign up above the door.

It said:

CHECK YOUR FEELINGS AT THE DOOR -MANAGT.

**PLEASE REVIEW!!**

**I thought you guys might like that sign at the end…ring any bells?? : )**

**Sorry for the long wait for an update. I'm finally out of school so I should be back to my usual updating schedule…(about every other day). **

**Thanks for reading and reviewing!!**


	10. Chapter 10

Chapter 10:

Chapter 10: Decisions

Three weeks later…

The crews of the Bering Sea crab boats began making their way to Dutch Harbor for the first offload of the Opilio crab season.

Aboard the Northwestern, tensions were still very high. When they reached Dutch Harbor, they would be picking up Alex from the dock. He had been flown back to Dutch after falling into the Bering Sea and being hauled out by the Maverick. The rest of the crew had mixed feelings about his return. Earlier that morning, Sarah had called a meeting down in the galley…

_The crew gathered around the table and the counter in the galley and waited anxiously for their skipper to join them. Sarah began climbing down from the wheelhouse and the crew tensed with apprehension._

"_I think you all know why I called you in here," said Sarah as she approached them, "We'll be tying up at Dutch this afternoon. I have an important decision to make…whether or not to allow Alex back on board."_

_Andrew stiffened and anger flashed in his eyes. Sarah gave him a warning look. Andrew gritted his teeth and remained silent, but still angry._

"_Now," she continued after a moment, "I know that some of you have different feelings towards Alex, as do I. I make all executive decisions and yes this is not a democracy, but you guys are not just my crew, you're my friends. What you feel and think is important to me. So, let's go around the room and I want to hear what each of you have to say. Don't worry about the others, just be honest. No one's getting in trouble for their opinion. Andrew, let's start with you."_

_Andrew's eyes narrowed in anger. _

"_As if I need to say anything!" he spat, "Of course I want Alex back on board! He's the only one on here with brains."_

_Jake shot Andrew a hateful look. Back when Sig was captain, he would never dare challenge him like Andrew challenged Sarah. It was just disrespectful and immature. _

_Sarah did not reply. She nodded curtly and turned to face Jon and Amy who stood near each other around the counter._

"_Jon? Amy?"_

"_I don't know," murmured Jon, "He's a good deckhand, but he causes a lot of problems. I'm going to have to stay neutral I suppose."_

"_I'm not so sure he should come back," said Amy, eyes flashing with anger, "He brings the moral down too much."_

_Sarah nodded thoughtfully before she turned her attention to Jake._

"_Jake?"_

_Jake sighed and looked away for a moment._

"_I don't like him," he said after a couple minutes, "But that doesn't mean he's not needed. He's experienced and he knows what he's doing. I think he should come back."_

_Sarah blinked in surprise. She had not been expecting that from Jake, but then again Jake was a smart guy. He knew how to put his feelings aside for the benefit of the rest of the crew. _

_Sarah thanked the deckhands and turned to go back up to the wheelhouse. She had a lot of thinking to do before they reached Dutch Harbor later that afternoon…_

As Jake, Jon, and Andrew tied down the Northwestern to the dock, Amy and Sarah walked out of the wheelhouse.

"Hey Jake!" called Sarah, "You're in charge till I get back, okay?"

Jake nodded and turned back to say something to Andrew. Amy and Sarah made their way down the dock, passing several other boats along the way.

"So do you really like Rick?" asked Amy with a knowing smile.

Sarah smiled back. Amy was one of her best friends. She should have known that Amy would eventually bring that back up.

"Yeah, I do," she replied, "He's a great guy. We talked a lot over the radio while we were hauling strings over the past few weeks. He's not what everyone else says he is."

Amy nodded thoughtfully and looked away as they strolled down the dock.

"Speaking of which, how are you and Jon doing?"

Amy blushed suddenly.

"Is it that obvious?" she asked, almost fearfully.

"Just a little," said Sarah sarcastically, "You two would be good together."

"Really?"

"Yeah," said Sarah giving her friend a nudge, "Really."

Just then, they passed the Time Bandit. Sarah glanced up for a moment and felt her muscles stiffen subconsciously.

"So what's their deal?" asked Amy, "They still hate us?"

"I'm not sure actually," murmured Sarah, "I haven't talked with the new captain yet. Apparently he's a family friend of the Hillstrand's and they're still friends with the Maverick."

"Speaking of which," said Amy, pointed ahead of them, "There she blows! Wanna go say hi?"

Sarah shot her friend a surprised look.

"You _want _to go say hi to them?"

"Yeah, why not?"

"Well…it's just that the rest of the crew…"

"Who cares what they think?" said Amy, "I want to meet this Rick Painter!"

Sarah shook her head, "Okay, if you say so."

As they approached the Maverick, Rick stuck his head out the window and waved.

"Hey! I was just going to call you!" he shouted, "Come on in!"

Sarah smiled back at him and felt her heart skip a beat. Amy gave her a knowing look and a playful nudge. Sarah suddenly realized that things had not changed between her and Amy since high school. They still gossiped and talked about guys all the time. Sarah was grateful for the support. No one else seemed to fully understand except Amy.

Sarah and Amy went up into the Maverick wheelhouse. They spent over an hour talking with Rick and a couple other deckhands. They discussed the rescue of Alex, fishing, and gossiped about their crews. After awhile, Sarah glanced at her watch. She gasped and grabbed Amy's arm.

"Oh, Amy we gotta go!" she exclaimed.

"Why? What is it?" asked Amy, looking confused.

"Alex is supposed to be at the Elbow Room in five minutes," she said, urgently, "He's going to be waiting for my answer."

"Waiting for your answer?" asked Rick, "What answer?"

"To whether or not he can have his job back," replied Amy.

"His job was in jeopardy?" asked Rick, "Why?"

"He's caused some…tension on the boat lately," said Sarah, carefully, "Some of the crew aren't too happy with him so we discussed earlier whether or not to let him back on board."

Rick raised a questioning eyebrow, "And are you going to?"

Sarah hesitated for a moment.

"I'm…I'm not sure…"

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**And thank you to all of you who have reviewed so far!!**


	11. Chapter 11

Chapter 11: Opilio Season: Round Two

**Warning: Brief bad language…just FYI…**

Chapter 11: Opilio Season: Round Two

Sarah and Amy said goodbye to Rick and made their way back down the dock. As they neared the Elbow Room, Sarah felt her stomach clench with apprehension. She still was not completely sure she wanted Alex back on the boat. After all the tension and conflict he caused, she wondered if it was really worth it.

Then again, she thought, the tension was really because of her relationship with the Maverick captain. She could not entirely blame Alex for his feelings. The rivalry was an old one and for some it went deeper than she realized. She shuddered inwardly as she thought about what her parents would say if they knew she was dating Rick.

As they walked into the Elbow Room, Sarah saw Alex sitting behind the bar. His brown hair looked like it had actually been combed for once and his blue eyes looked almost peaceful instead of the usual angry gleam.

Amy shot Sarah a questioning look.

"What are you gonna do?" she hissed.

Sarah sighed, "I'll figure it out. Just wait for me near the door, okay?"

Amy frowned in concern but nodded obediently and sat down at the table closest to the door.

Sarah took a deep breath and began to approach Alex. He was too engrossed on some football game on the TV above the bar to notice her as she walked up.

"Alex?" she asked quietly as she sat down on the bar stool beside of him.

Alex jumped slightly in surprise and gave Sarah a startled look.

"Sarah?" he asked as a smile played across his handsome face, "Hey! I didn't know you guys were coming in this early."

"Yeah, we filled our tanks so we came in for the first offload," said Sarah, glancing away, "So, how are you doing? Did the doctor give you a clean bill of health?"

Alex smirked, "Yeah but he said I should take it easy for a few days. Kinda hard to do when you're a crab fisherman, huh?"

Sarah smiled slightly and nodded awkwardly in agreement.

"You know what?" asked Alex, giving her his full attention, "Those Maverick guys really aren't _that_ bad."

Sarah's eyes widened in surprise.

"After they pulled me out of the water they treated me like a king," continued Alex, "I talked with your boyfriend a lot too on the way into Dutch. Nice guy, that Rick Painter. I guess you were right…can't always judge a person by his parents."

Sarah gaped in shock. This was the last thing she had been expecting. In all honesty, she was surprised that he even wanted his job back on the Northwestern.

"Wow," she said after a moment, "You've changed a lot in the past few days."

Alex sneered, "Not really. I'm still the same pain-in-the-ass that I've always been. I guess I just changed my way of thinking about certain things."

"Well, in that case…you looking for a job?"

Alex's eyes lit up and he flashed her another smile.

"Hell yeah!"

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"Load em up!" shouted Sarah as she, Alex, and Amy climbed aboard the Northwestern, "We're heading out for round two!"

"We're leaving already?" exclaimed Jake, "We just finished the offload!"

"I know," said Sarah as she jumped over the rail and headed towards the wheelhouse, "And we got more to catch, so let's move it!"

Suddenly, Andrew gave an excited shout as Alex climbed over the rail. He ran over and gave his friend a hearty hug.

Amy walked over to Jon and watched the scene from a distance, uncertainty lining their faces.

Jake smiled slightly. Even though he personally did not like the guy, Alex was a good deckhand and his skills were needed aboard the Northwestern.

"So how'd those Maverick backstabbers treat ya, Alex?" asked Andrew, goading him on.

Jake frowned instantly in disapproval and shot a glance up at Sarah as she opened the door to the wheelhouse to step inside. She paused for a moment and glanced back over her shoulder. She and Jake made eye-contact and shared a brief, concerned look. She turned to go inside the wheelhouse, but stopped again when she heard Alex's reply.

Alex frowned at his friend for a moment.

"Andrew," he said slowly, "Those guys aren't backstabbers."

Jake's mouth fell open in shock and Jon and Amy exchanged surprised looks. Andrew looked utterly baffled.

"What are you talking about man?"

"They're good people," replied Alex, glancing up at Sarah and giving her slight smile, "They saved my life and they took good care of me while I was aboard their boat. Rick's a hell of a guy too. He's got a good heart. We were wrong to judge them otherwise."

Andrew took a step back, too stunned to speak. Jake smiled broadly and nodded in approval to Alex before he turned to untie the Northwestern from the dock. Alex returned the nod and turned to face Sarah again.

"That's enough of all that," he said with a smile playing across his face, "Let's shut up and fish!"

**PLEASE REVIEW!!**

**Hey did any of you see the preview for next Tuesday's episode?? It looks like that was Edgar who got hit in the head with the hook that flew across. I think that was Jake who tried to grab it too, but he missed by like two centimeters and it flew over and smacked Edgar right upside the head. He immediately went down to the deck and the other deckhands were freaking out.**

**Thanks for reading/reviewing!!**


	12. Chapter 12

Chapter 12: The Storm

Chapter 12: Approaching Storm

"Watch that line!" shouted Jake, as Jon tossed the buoys over the rail.

Jon leapt out of a coil of the line that had gotten wrapped around his leg. He gave Jake a grateful nod and turned to prepare the next pot.

Sarah watched the scene from her place up in the wheelhouse. It had been two weeks since they had left Dutch Harbor and the fishing was slow-going. They were pulling pots with averages of only about twenty keepers. They needed to speed up if they expected to meet the offload date.

Sarah had decided to move away from the rest of the pack and head further north. The weather radio blared loudly above her, warning her yet again about the dangerous storm that was approaching them.

Sarah sighed in annoyance and shut it off. She knew all too well the danger she was putting herself, the boat, and the crew into, but the possibility of striking it rich with Opilio crab overtook the danger they were approaching. The Northwestern was heading straight for the storm and the waves were beginning to show it.

Down on the deck, Jake began to worry over the weather system that was moving in. Sarah had called Jake inside the wheelhouse earlier that day to talk to him in private…

"_I don't know what to do, Jake," said Sarah, running a hand through her hair, "We have to try to fish somewhere else if we're going to make this due date, but it could be disastrous. I mean, we're talking forty to fifty foot waves! This could be tantamount to suicide."_

_Jake sighed and took a second to gaze at his skipper. He remembered when he was her age aboard the Northwestern. He was so much more naïve and unsure of himself. Sarah was confident and knew who she was. Her heritage helped out a lot with that. Jake smiled to himself as he thought about her parents. His best friend, Edgar, was one of the best deckhands to ever fish the Bering Sea. Jack was the best greenhorn that ever stepped foot on the Northwestern. And Sig, her uncle, was the best skipper he had ever known. The man was a genius and seemed to always know where the crab were. It was a Norwegian thing, and Sarah had inherited a lot of that._

"_What makes you want to go north so badly?" he asked her after a moment._

_Sarah sighed and shook her head, her eyes troubled and shoulders tense with apprehension._

"_I don't know," she murmured, "It's like an instinct. Something's telling me that's where the crab are…I just don't know if it's worth the risk."_

_Jake nodded and gave her another scrutinizing look._

"_Well, if you're anything like your parents and your uncle, then you're right."_

_Sarah shot a surprised look in Jake's direction._

"_Follow your instincts, Sarah," he said, leaning in to emphasize his words, "Take us to the crab."_

And that was exactly what Sarah intended to do.

She turned to look down on the deck where her deckhands were prepping another pot to launch in a test string on the way to her chosen spot far north of the rest of the fleet. Just in case her instincts were off, they could always come back and fish their twenty average strings until they found better fishing.

Sarah smiled in surprise when she saw Jake and Alex laughing and joking around with one another. They both bit into a herring and ran around trying to gross-out the other deckhands. Amy ran away screaming and hid behind Jon. Jon cried out in fear as Alex ran over to him and tried to spit the fish head at him.

Andrew sulked on the other side of the deck. His best friend had changed ever since Rick and the Maverick crew pulled him out of the water. Alex had a new found respect for the man and had changed his views on the old rivalry. He also changed his on-deck attitude. Sarah had kept an especially close eye on him ever since they pulled out of Dutch Harbor. He had made an honest effort in making up for his earlier behavior. He began to encourage the deckhands instead of bringing them down or making fun of them constantly. In fact, since he had come back aboard, the entire attitude of the crew had changed.

Just then, a beeping sound came from the radio, jolting Sarah out of her reverie.

"This is Sarah Hansen of the Northwestern, who's calling?"

"The best daddy in the whole world."

Sarah's eyes lit up at the sound of Edgar's voice.

"Dad!" she exclaimed in surprise, "How are you radioing me? Are you in Dutch?"

"Yeah, you know your mom and I…we can't seem to keep away for too long. We're staying here until you finish out your season. We'd like to see you when you come back. That and we wanted to say hi to a few old friends. Sig, Norman, Nick, and Matt are going to come up too when we get word that you guys are heading back to port."

"That's great! I can't wait to see you all again! I know Jake can't either."

"Good old Jake, how's he doing?"

"He's amazing. He's the best deckboss a skipper could ask for. He's honest, sincere, and loyal. It doesn't get much better than Jake."

"Good to hear," said Edgar with a slight laugh, "Now I've heard a rather vicious rumor about you."

"Really?" asked Sarah, heart leaping into her throat, "What rumor?"

"I went to the Elbow Room a couple days ago," replied Edgar, "Someone there said you and Rick Painter are an item?"

Sarah did not reply for a moment. She had been dreading this for a long time now. It had been a secret she had kept from Edgar and Jack. She knew that they would not be pleased.

"Yeah, we are," she said, trying to sound confident, "And he's not like his father, I swear. You can ask Alex Mahone when we return to Dutch. Alex fell overboard and they saved him."

Edgar sighed, "Well I can't tell you what to do anymore. You're a grown woman. You can make your own decisions…just be careful, okay?"

"So…you don't mind?" asked Sarah, hesitantly.

Edgar sighed again, "No, but I still don't like his father…at all."

"Neither do I," replied Sarah, "And I don't really think he does either. So…are you going to tell Mom?"

Edgar laughed slightly, "Yeah I guess you'd better let me tell her, huh? She won't be as understanding as I am, I'm sure. I mean, after all, his dad did hurt her pretty bad."

"Yeah…that's what I'm worried about," muttered Sarah.

"Well, don't," retorted Edgar, "You have plenty of other things to worry about right now. Let me handle this one, okay? You keep concentrating on that boat and your crew. You're heading for a big storm, am I right?"

"How'd you know?"

"I checked with some buddies of mine at Dutch. They showed be where you were headed on radar. Just be careful and bring them back home safe, okay?"

"Yeah…I'll do my best."

"That's all I could ever ask for," said Edgar, warmly, "Take care of yourself Sarah…I love you."

"I love you too, Dad."

Sarah ended the transmission and sighed. Her mind had trouble wrapping around everything that was going on. Blake…Rick…her parents…the crew…the boat…the storm…the offload deadline…the crab.

She shook her head to clear her thoughts and turned back to the helm. The storm was coming and she needed to have her mind clear to steer them safely through. She took a deep breath and prepared herself for what she knew was coming.

"It's going to be a _long_ night…"

**PLEASE REVIEW!!**

**And check out "She's Just Like the Ocean."**

**It's a short one-shot based on Edgar and Jack…**

**Thanks for the support!! I love you guys!! **


	13. Chapter 13

Chapter 13: Lucky Lady

**Note: The boat mentioned in this chapter is not a boat from the series. I came up with it on my own…as you'll see why after you read it…just FYI! **

**Thanks for the reviews!!**

Chapter 13: _Lucky Catch_

"Watch out!" cried Sarah on the intercom as a massive rogue wave poured past her.

The deckhands below scrambled for cover as the wave roared over the railing and swept across the deck.

Sarah cursed under her breath. The weather was getting worse the further North they went. She wondered briefly if this was a good idea, but the allure of the Opilio crab reminded her that this risk they were taking was worth it. Their livelihoods depended on the crab they caught and so far it had not been a promising season.

They had started out with average numbers and made their first offload date on time. But over the past couple of weeks, the crab dwindled to below average numbers. Sarah knew they could fish twenty average for a long time and make the last offload date, but the chance of getting it all at once seemed like a much better option at the time.

The weather radio blared the dreadful news yet again. A fishing vessel near the area they were heading for had capsized just moments ago. The Northwestern was only two miles away. Sarah had quickly maneuvered the vessel in the direction of the downed boat. They were just arriving at the scene when the radio beeped.

"This is Sarah Hansen on the Northwestern."

"Ms. Hansen, this is the U.S. Coast Guard," said a male voice, "We see that you are near the missing vessel, Lucky Catch."

"Yeah, we are and I'm going to get my crew out on deck to help search for survivors. I'll let you know if we see anything."

Sarah ended the call and hurriedly grabbed the other radio.

"Okay guys, we're here!" she announced, "Stop prepping pots and start looking for survivors. Grab some life rings too."

"Roger!" shouted Jake as he and Alex moved to get the life rings.

Jon and Amy split up and stood on either side of the boat and began to scan the dark water. Andrew climbed around to the bow of the Northwestern and strained to see in the pitch black night.

Sarah flipped on the high-powered lights and the area around them soon glowed brightly.

"I don't see anything," murmured Andrew and Alex joined him out on the bow, carrying a life ring in one hand.

Alex's jaw tightened, "It doesn't look good. Coast Guard said the ship capsized. Sounds like it went down pretty fast. And how long did it take us to get here? Fifteen, twenty minutes? Unless those guys were in survival suits, they're already gone."

Andrew nodded grimly. The outlook for the crew of Lucky Catch was not good.

"Anything yet?" asked Sarah over the intercom.

Alex turned to look up at the wheelhouse and shook his head. Just then a Coast Guard helicopter flew over them, its broad spotlight searching the very choppy seas.

Sarah turned to look at the deckhands behind her. Jake shook his head sadly and gritted his teeth as he turned to look back out on the water.

The waves rocked the Northwestern violently from side to side. Sarah suddenly understood how easily a boat could be overwhelmed and capsized in the rough, twenty-five foot seas.

Suddenly, a loud shot from the bow caught her attention. Alex and Andrew were pointing at something in the distance. Sarah's heart raced when she saw what they were pointing at. It was bright orange and looked like a person floating in the water.

"We got a survival suit off the bow!" said Sarah, calling the Coast Guard, "Can you see it from your position?"

"Roger that Northwestern, we can see the body now," replied the man, "We're swinging around for a closer view and we'll take it from there."

Sarah watched tensely as the chopper hovered over the bright orange figure. The fast-moving blades stirred up the already high seas and sent freezing spray flying out in all directions.

The basket dropped from the hatch and slowly made its way down to the Coast Guard diver in the water. The man had one arm wrapped around the person in the survival suit and one arm trying desperately to keep them both afloat. The two were gathered inside the basket and raised back up into the helicopter.

"What's his status?" asked Sarah into the radio.

"I'm afraid he's DOA," replied the Coast Guard man, "The Cutter just radioed in. They found three more DOA. There are two more still missing."

Sarah felt like someone had just punched her in the stomach. It suddenly became very hard to breath. She swallowed, cleared her throat, and reached for the intercom.

"Hey guys…I got bad news."

The deckhands turned and braced themselves. Jake frowned worriedly. Alex and Andrew exchanged sorrowful glances, already predicting what had occurred. Jon and Amy shot each other nervous looks and waited for Sarah to continue.

"The man was DOA. And the Coat Guard Cutter found three more dead…two are still missing."

Sarah felt emotion begin to tighten around her throat. She swallowed again and tried to regain her composure. She had to be strong now for her crew. That's what her dad and Sig had told her from the beginning. If she wanted to be a skipper she would have to be twice as tough as any deckhand in the fleet. She would have to put herself last and the boat and crew first. This was one of those times.

Jake hung his head in despair and turned to lean out over the railing to hide his emotion. Alex snarled in anger and hit the rail on the bow in frustration. Andrew shook his head in disbelief and gazed back out into the dark depths of the Bering Sea. Amy tried desperately to compose herself, but began to cry silently while Jon wrapped a comforting arm around her.

Sarah was fighting desperately to hold back her emotions in the wheelhouse. Tears fell silently down her cheek and she brushed them away quickly. Now was not the time to lose it. She had to stay calm and collected for what was about to happen. Steeling herself, she picked up the intercom radio.

"I want you all to be fully aware of the situation we're about to put ourselves into," she said gravely, "We're going to be heading right through the middle of this storm tonight and into the morning. It's the same storm these guys went through…its serious stuff. Forty to fifty foot seas are about a four hour ride away. Are you guys with me?"

Sarah waited tensely for the reply. She knew she was asking a lot from her crew. She could very well be leading them all to their deaths for all she knew.

Jake exchanged glances with Jon and Amy before he turned to push the button on the intercom down on the deck.

"We're always with you, Sarah," he said sincerely, "Take us to the crab!"

Sarah smiled through her tears. Jake's loyalty never ceased to amaze her.

"We're game!" shouted Alex from the bow, "Let's do this!"

He pumped his fist into the air and turned to curse the sea.

Sarah could not suppress her laugh at the sight: mean, tough, big-shot Alex challenging the Bering Sea.

"Alright," she said into the intercom, "Then brace yourselves. I think we're in for one heck of a wild ride!"

**PLEASE REVIEW!!**

**I'll be gone for the next few days doing various things. So I probably won't get to write more until around June 1rst...**

**Thanks again for your feedback!! I REALLY appreciate it!! **


	14. Chapter 14

Chapter 14: Into the Storm

**It's a miracle! I managed to find a tiny bit of time to write! You guys may not like me after this one…but please be don't be **_**too**_** mad! I'll update asap!**

Chapter 14: Into the Storm

A few short moments after the Lucky Catch capsized, Sarah steered the Northwestern right into the storm.

They were moving in on the edge of the colossal storm front and the waves had reached over thirty feet in height. The rushing wind swept over the deck and forced massive rogue waves to wash over it. If the deckhands had been out on deck they would have been quickly and easily swept over the side.

Suddenly, one wave slammed into the side of the wheelhouse, startling Sarah. She leapt up slightly, eyes wide with fear. The realization that this was just the edge of the storm made her begin to question her decision to go ahead and fish up north. This could literally be a suicide mission if they were not careful.

Sarah let out a shaky breath, her hands gripping the controls until her knuckles turned white, she watched for the next rogue wave to sweep over the boat.

The Northwestern flew over the crest of a forty footer. It seemed to hover in mid-air for a brief moment in time before it began its rapid descent back to the Bering Sea.

Below deck the deckhands felt the boat plunge upwards suddenly and then felt their stomachs flip over as it began to fall back down.

Sarah held her breath and gritted her teeth as the boat made a horrible jarring sound as it landed heavily in the rough seas. She felt a sharp pang of dread as she saw another monstrous wave heading towards them. The Northwestern repeated the rapid climb and descent just as another wave from the starboard side swept across the deck.

Sarah's hands shook slightly as she throttled the boat over the massive waves. Just then the radio beeped and Sarah reached up to grab it, not taking her eyes off the water in front of her.

"Yeah? Who's this?" she asked shortly, not bothering to take the time to give the proper call out.

"Sarah? Hey it's Jake on the Cornelia Marie," said Jake Harris, sounding rather worried and frustrated, "We saw on the radar that you guys are almost in the middle of that storm system. What the hell do you think you're doing?"

Sarah hesitated before she replied, her mind too occupied to come up with a decent response.

"I had a hunch that the crab is going to be up North. We thought we'd take our chances."

Jake sighed and shook his head back on the Cornelia Marie. They were further south east and were in perfectly clear skies and calm seas. Josh climbed up into the wheelhouse and gave his younger brother a questioning look.

Jake shook his head again and ran a hand through his messy brown hair.

"I'm talking to Sarah Hansen," he told Josh, "They're in the middle of that storm."

Josh's eyes grew wide with astonishment as Jake turned back to the radio.

"Taking your chances is right!" he exclaimed in exasperation, "You're going to get yourselves killed. Didn't you hear what happened to Lucky Catch?"

Sarah flinched as another wave smacked the side of the wheelhouse. The Northwestern groaned in complaint as it crested another forty foot wave.

"We were there," she retorted, "We tried helping the Coast Guard look for survivors…"

"And there were none!" interrupted Jake, angrily, "Wasn't that a clear enough sign for you? Get out of there before it's too late!"

"It already is Jake," replied Sarah tensely, "We're in the center of this and we're going to ride it out and then we're going to go fishing. I'll talk to you later."

"Be safe, Sarah…and come back home."

Right after Jake ended the transmission with the Northwestern, another call came through the Cornelia Marie radio.

"Hey, Jake? Josh? Anyone there?"

"This is Jake on the Cornelia Marie, who is this?" asked Jake tersely. He was really not in the mood to chitchat with anyone else at that moment.

"It's Rick on the Maverick," said Rick Painter, voice tense with fear, "Look, I can't get a hold on Sarah on the Northwestern and they're in the middle of some massive storm up north. Have you talked to her? I'm worried about them."

Jake and Josh exchanged knowing glances. Jake sighed and turned to talk into the radio. Josh shook his head in despair and folded his arms over his chest. He looked out onto the strangely calm section of the Bering Sea they were fishing on. He could only imagine the nightmare that the Northwestern was facing at that very moment many, many miles away from them.

"Yeah, Rick I just got off the radio with her," replied Jake, forcing his voice to remain calm, "Her signal was bad and I think it was starting to go out at the end of our conversation. She said that she had a hunch about crab being up north and that they were taking their chances and riding out the storm. She sounded nervous but they're okay right now."

Rick sighed in relief and ran a hand over his face. His blue eyes were clouded with worry as he gazed out onto the flat calm sea. He was a mere five miles away from the Cornelia Marie and was also experiencing mediocre fishing yet very good weather.

"Good...I'll call her when this thing's over and make sure they made it through. I'm going to call the Coast Guard to remind them that they're up there…just in case."

Jake shook his head in defeat and glanced briefly over at his brother standing by the far window of the wheelhouse.

"Rick I'm afraid it won't matter," he muttered darkly, "They're too far away for the Coast Guard to ever reach them in time. They're on their own…"

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Sarah's eyes grew wide with horror as she saw the fifty foot wave that was barreling right towards them.

For a brief second she wondered if she could turn the boat away from it, but when she looked up again at the wave she realized that they had no time to do anything.

"Guys!" she shouted desperately on the intercom, "Brace yourselves, there's a big one coming and its coming fast!"

Below deck the deckhands were sitting at the galley table waiting out the storm. When they heard Sarah's warning, they shared panicked and terrified looks.

"Get down! Everyone find something to hang on to and hang on tight!" shouted Jake over the cries of panic and fear.

Sarah stopped breathing altogether as she glanced up from her captain's chair. The rogue wave stretched out in front of the Northwestern, towering over it by several boat heights. The air suddenly grew ominously still as the wave reared up and began to crash down on top of the boat.

The boat creaked and groaned heavily under the weight of the water. Sarah had dove for cover under the control table, but she decided against it. If this wave was going to take them out, she wanted to do what she could to save the crew. She crawled back out and peeked over the controls to look out the front of the wheelhouse.

The Northwestern was completely surrounded by water…and it was not receding.

With a pang of dismay Sarah realized that they must be under water. She scrambled to her feat and ran to grab the radio. Below her she could hear the shouts and cries of her deckhands as panic began to quickly set in. Water was pouring into the wheelhouse through the cracks in the windows and was slowly filling up the room.

"Mayday! Mayday! This is the Northwestern! Mayday! We're going down! Coast Guard…mayday!"

…………**..**

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	15. Chapter 15

Once again ladies and gents it's a miracle

**Once again ladies and gents it's a miracle! I'm writing this one hour before I leave for graduation! If that's not dedication I don't know what is! LOL!!**

Chapter 15: Miracle

Sarah's heart pounded in her chest as the deathly silence descended on the Northwestern. From all the windows in the wheelhouse she could see water rushing by and leaking through the many cracks to slowly fill the small room. It was eerily quiet and she felt a thrill of fear when the Coast Guard did not respond to her call.

"Sarah!" shouted Jake from the galley.

He was wading through knee-deep water and stumbling around floating chairs and supplies in an attempt to get to the wheelhouse. When he arrived at the stairs, a small waterfall rushed down them, nearly knocking him off his feet. While he struggled up the stairs, Jon and Amy climbed onto the top bunks to get away from the steadily rising water line.

Amy was hysterical and began to scream in mortal terror. Alex's eyes were wide with horror but he remained calm for the sake of the crew. He grabbed Andrew by the collar and shoved him roughly towards the bunks.

"Get up there and stay there!" he ordered as he turned to follow Jake.

He slipped a few times as he climbed the water-strewn stairs and rushed into the wheelhouse, gasping for air.

Jake was talking urgently to Sarah, his voice tense with dread and fear.

"What'd the Coast Guard say?" he asked, looking into Sarah's terrified eyes, "You made the mayday call right?"

Sarah shook her head and tried to get over the numbing feelings of fear and doom.

"Of course I did," she said as she climbed onto her chair to get out of the water, "But they didn't respond."

Alex and Jake exchanged a glance before Alex turned to look intently into his captain's eyes.

"Then what do you want us to do?"

Sarah gazed back at him with a blank expression on her face. What could they do? They were under water and apparently sinking rapidly. As far as Sarah was concerned, this was the end for them all.

"Get the crew into survival suits," she said numbly, "Tell them to get ready to abandon ship. We'll try swimming for the surface…we might have a chance if we can do that."

Alex nodded, mind clearing with the familiar sound of orders coming from Sarah. It gave him a sense of structure and order and allowed him to ignore the terrible thoughts going through his mind long enough to fulfill his duty.

"Alright, I'll tell them," he said as he descended the stairs and half-swam into the galley.

Jake gave Sarah a despairing look. She gazed back at him and shook her head in disbelief.

"They trusted me to take care of the boat and to bring the crew home," she murmured, eyes glazed, "That's why they handed her over to me when they retired…and what did I do? I led you all to your deaths. All because I was too greedy…because I wanted to catch the crab."

Jake shook his head in protest and kneeled in front of Sarah. He gazed into her hurt and scared eyes and tried his best to comfort her.

"No, Sarah. That's not true and you and I both know that. We all agreed to come here, not just you. Sometimes things just happen. Now we don't have time to worry about that anymore, okay? Right now let's worry about getting everyone out of here safely."

Sarah nodded as Jake reached into a cabinet and pulled out two survival suits.

Just then, a loud creaking and groaning came from the boat. Jake froze and looked around to see what had caused the noise. Then the felt the boat move rapidly upwards. With a final groan of effort from the Northwestern, her bow leapt out of the Bering Sea and into the open air.

Jake and Sarah flew backwards and slammed into the back of the wheelhouse as the nose of the Northwestern hung in mid-air. Sarah moved her pounding head slightly to look over at Jake. He gazed back at her with a look of startled bewilderment. Below deck the other deckhands were crying out with surprise and startled yells.

Slowly, the nose of the Northwestern began to descend and the back of the boat slowly rose up. After several tense minutes, the entire boat rested solidly on the surface of the ocean.

Sarah moved quickly, not daring to stop and celebrate the miracle that had just occurred. She pushed several buttons on the controls and a whirling sound filled the boat.

"Make sure all the pumps are working!" she ordered Jake, "We have to get this water out of the boat before we go down again!"

Jake rushed down the stairs which were now flowing with water from the wheelhouse. Soon the wheelhouse had only a couple inches of water left on the floor and Sarah scrambled below deck to grab a bucket.

Alex rushed over to her the moment she entered the galley. The water was streaming out of it through the pumps and back out into the ocean. Alex's eyes were wide with amazement.

"What in the world did you do?" he asked, eyes shining with the joy of just being alive.

Sarah shook her head to indicate that she had no idea. She grabbed a pitcher that floated nearby and looked back over her shoulder at Alex.

"I guess we were just in one big wave," she said, voice shaky, "It took us under but the boat didn't take on water very fast so I guess we were still buoyant enough to head back to the surface."

Alex shook his head in disbelief and turned to help Jake check the pumps and calm the rest of the worried crew.

Jon and Amy began to help clean up the mess in the galley while Andrew sloshed through the remaining water to go help Alex.

Sarah went back up into the wheelhouse and began trying to bail the rest of the water out through the window. She sighed after a moment and sank wearily into her chair. She smiled briefly in happiness and looked out through the wheelhouse window.

The sun was rising and the dark clouds had moved on. The storm was gone and the waves were beginning to settle down again. As the sun's rays struck the choppy sea, they reflected onto the Northwestern, illuminating it in the early morning light.

Sarah thought that no morning had ever been so bright.

**PLEASE REVIEW!!**


	16. Chapter 16

Chapter 16: Hail Mary

**YAY! More free time to write!! LOL, I get soooo excited when I get to write this story. This honestly has to be my favorite story I've written so far. I'm glad I chose to make a sequel! Thanks for all your support!!**

Chapter 16: Hail Mary

For the next several hours Sarah and her crew bailed water out of the soppy Northwestern. The storm had long since passed and the ocean looked like a totally different world. The sun was out and shining brightly, the waves lapped lazily along the side of the vessel, and the birds called out to one another happily.

Sarah shook her head in disbelief as she thought over all that had happened a few hours ago. It was a complete miracle that the Northwestern had managed to resurface. The resiliency of the vessel astounded her. All those hours of labor at the dock to repair broken parts and to maintain the boat's strong structure were suddenly well worth the time and effort.

"How goes it, skip?" called Alex from the deck with a slight smirk on his face.

Sarah laughed and shook her head at the senior deckhand in amusement. He certainly had come a long way from his stubborn, irritable, and hateful self. Ever since the day the Maverick pulled him from the freezing sea he had changed his way of thinking. He had suddenly grown to respect the Maverick and their brave crew and the near-death experience had made him more humble. It made him realize how precious and fleeting life was.

"It's almost dry up here!" shouted Sarah through the back wheelhouse window, "How's the galley shaping up?"

Alex shrugged, "Aw, it's a little damp but it'll do. When we gonna go fishing?"

Sarah smiled as Jake walked out from the galley and stood beside Alex.

"How's now work for you boys?"

Jake's face lit up and he gave a shout of excitement. Alex laughed loudly and practically skipped across the deck to begin preparing the bait. The other deckhands came out from below deck at the sound of Jake's cry. They looked around in confusion, half expecting another rogue wave to be the cause of his sudden outburst.

"We're going fishing!" announced Jake as the deckhands glanced around warily.

Andrew's face lit up at the sound of that and he smacked Jake on the back with glee. Jon and Amy beamed happily as they looked out onto the calm seas.

For the first time in weeks, Andrew and Alex embraced in a friendly bear-hug. Finally able to forgive one another for the past, they were more than ready to get back to fishing. The warmer weather and calm seas lifted their spirits.

Sarah noticed a sudden change in her crew. The terrifying nightmare they had experienced the day before had somehow fused them all together. Feuds, disagreements, and rivalries dissolved in the morning sunlight as the crew banded together to prepare the pots for launching.

Two hours later, Sarah came out of the wheelhouse and leaned on the rail to look down on her deckhands. Jake glanced up and saw her standing there. His eyes narrowed in concern.

"What's up?" he asked her.

"I got bad news," she said slowly as the other deckhands paused to glance up at her.

Instantly the crew felt a thrill of dread run through their veins. The last time Sarah had bad news it was about the storm that had nearly killed them all.

"What is it?" asked Alex, equally concerned.

"The season's over in five days," she announced, "So we have to turn and burn…and I _mean _turn and burn. This is going to be a Hail Mary string. It's all or nothing for us now. We're going to begin dropping the pots in about an hour so get inside and get something to eat because it's going to be a long day."

The crew nodded in agreement, exchanging excited and nervous glances. This is what they were born to do. Fishing under pressure was how the Northwestern had always thrived on and the pressure was on.

One hour later, the crew assembled on the deck and waited for their captain's orders to begin fishing.

"Don't you guys think that this could end up being bad?" asked Andrew, skeptically, "I mean, what happens if we don't catch anything? Won't that mean we almost died for nothing?"

Collectively, the rest of the crew turned to glare angrily at Andrew.

"What the hell are you talking about?" snapped Jon.

"You have a lot of nerve saying that!" snarled Jake as he got in Andrew's face, "After what just happened we should be glad we're alive! You have no right to question any order from the captain."

"I didn't!" protested Andrew as he shoved Jake away from him, "I'm just saying that would suck. I mean, shouldn't we catch at least a little something for all our trouble?"

Alex sneered and shook his head in disgust. He turned his back on his friend and began to help Amy prepare the first pot.

Jake's lip curled up in a snarl as he prepared to unleash a stinging retort.

"Might I make a suggestion?" asked Sarah, leaning on the railing outside of her wheelhouse.

She had seen the entire thing and was just waiting for the right moment to intercede. The crew looked up at her, surprised and slightly embarrassed. Andrew looked away sharply and felt his cheeks flush. Jake never took his infuriated gaze off of Andrew. Even though the guy had seemed to try to make an effort to make up for his earlier actions, he and Jake never got along, not ever since the day they had gotten into a fight on deck. Jake's respect for the man dissipated that day and his sharp comments and constant challenging of Sarah's decisions got on his nerves.

Sarah leaned further over the railing and gave Andrew a hard, long look.

"Shut up…and fish!"

**Thanks for the reviews! You guys are awesome!**

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	17. Chapter 17

Chapter 17: Turn and Burn

**Thanks again for reading and reviewing!! This story's about to come to a close! I think I'll do one, maybe two, more chapters and then an epilogue. After that, snowymistyriver and I are teaming up to write a story based on the brothers on the Cornelia Marie. **

**Enjoy!!**

Chapter 17: Turn and Burn

"Let's speed it up over there, Andrew!" barked Jake irritably from the rail.

They had been dropping and hauling pots almost non-stop for the past three days. The constant work made the deckhands even more tired and irritable than usual.

They only had two days left to reach their quota and return to Dutch Harbor and their deckboss, Jake, had no patience left in him.

He mumbled something angrily under his breath as Andrew turned and gave him a nasty look.

"So why is it I have to go and do the greenhorn baiting job?" complained Andrew as he stuffed another bag full of chopped up herring.

"Didn't you hear Sarah earlier?" barked Alex, walking over to stand with Jake, "She told you to shut up and fish! Stop complaining and just get it done, alright?"

Andrew fell silent at the retribution from his once-best-friend. He stomped angrily over to the next pot on the launcher and hung the bait without another word.

Jake raised an eyebrow and shot Alex a look.

"Can you teach me how to do that?" he mumbled as he picked up the line to throw over the rail.

"Teach you to do what?" asked Alex as he tossed his burnt-out cigarette into the Bering Sea.

Jake nodded towards Andrew who had gone back to stuffing bait bags.

"Make him listen to me. He seems to take orders from you rather well."

Alex smirked, "I don't think its something that can be taught."

Jake nodded in agreement and tossed the shot over the rail. Alex grabbed the buoys and tossed them after the lines of shot.

"So do you all think we gotta chance?" asked Jon as he sauntered over to them.

Jake sighed and shook his head, "I don't know, but I sure hope we do. We went through a lot to get here so I hope it was worth it."

Amy turned the corner coming out of the galley and nearly ran right into Andrew. He gave her an angry look and muttered as he stalked past her.

Amy gave the other deckhands a startled look as she approached them.

"What the heck was that?" she exclaimed as she pulled her hood over her tangled hair.

Jake and Alex shook their heads and spoke at the same time:

"Don't ask."

DCDCDCDCDCDCDCDCDCDCDCDCDCDCDCDCDCDCDCDC

Later that evening, up in the wheelhouse, Sarah was preparing to line the boat up with the string they set right after the storm.

Suddenly, a bleeping noise from the radio jerked her from her thoughts.

"This is Sarah Hansen of the Northwestern," she said, giving the formal greeting, "Whose calling?"

"Sarah! Hey, it's Rick!"

Sarah beamed instantly at the sound of Rick Painter's voice.

"Hey! How are you?"

"How am _I_?" exclaimed Rick in disbelief, "Um, how about how are _you_? I tried to call you earlier but you were in that storm. Is everyone okay up there?"

Sarah hesitated for a moment.

"Um, yeah we're fine. It was a close call, but we're okay."

Rick sighed in relief.

"Well that's great news! So what happened?"

Sarah took a deep breath before she relayed all the dreadful events of that long dark night. She told him all about plowing through wave after wave and the horrible noises the Northwestern made each time she was struck. Finally she told him about the colossal rogue wave that nearly swallowed them whole.

"Oh my…Sarah you could have all…"

"Yeah, I know," said Sarah with a sigh, "It was scary. I just hope it was worth it. I'd hate to take these guys up here, make them go through all that, and then catch nothing."

"I'm just glad you're okay," said Rick with relief in his voice, "So when are you coming home?"

"In two more days. We're running this one till the last second. Why? Are you already back in port?"

"Yeah, the Maverick had good luck this season," said Rick, pride in his voice, "Not too shabby for a greenhorn captain, eh?"

Sarah laughed as she pulled the boat alongside the first pot.

"Congratulations Rick! I hope I can have the same results once this is over. I'd like to be known as one of the great captains, like Sig, instead of the crazy one that nearly got her whole crew killed!"

Rick could not help but laugh at that.

"Oh don't worry," he said, reassuringly, "Even if they all hate you, I'll always love you."

Sarah felt a warmth spread throughout her entire body. She smiled to herself and shook her head.

"You never cease to amaze me, Painter. I'll see you back at Dutch in a couple days."

"Take care, Hansen."

Sarah ended the transmission just as an excited shout sounded from the deck behind her. Sarah whirled around and leapt out of her chair. She rushed out of the wheelhouse and flung open the door. Leaning over the railing, she held her breath as the first pot cleared the rail.

The pot was overflowing with Opilio crab. Several crabs hung onto the sides of the pot, desperately trying to find a way inside to the bait.

The deckhands cheered happily. Jake and Alex exchanged victorious hugs while Jon nearly broke down into tears of joy. Even Andrew had lightened up a bit and was talking excitedly to Amy.

Sarah felt relief spread through every fiber of her body. She had not realized how tense and nervous she was until that moment. She suddenly felt weak and exhausted, but the sight of those crab and the cries of joy from her crew were enough to keep her going.

In only two more days, they would be back in Dutch Harbor, safe from the terrible storm systems, and with a boat full of Opilio crab.

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	18. Chapter 18

Chapter 18: Home

Chapter 18: Redemption

It had been one of the most brutal Opilio crab seasons yet. All across the Bering Sea boats began to turn their bows toward Dutch Harbor, more than ready to reach solid ground.

On the Northwestern, Sarah was taking a moment to figure out what to say to her parents regarding her relationship with Rick.

Meanwhile, Edgar and Jack Hansen sat in the Elbow Room with Sig, Norman, Matt, and Nick. They had all gathered to greet Sarah and the new Northwestern crew once they arrived. For Sarah, it would mean the official right of passage as a skipper on the Bering Sea. She had survived both the King Crab and Opilio Crab seasons and had proved herself to be a worthy captain.

"The boats are comin'!" shouted an elderly man sitting near the window.

Everyone in the Elbow Room stood up quickly and ran outside toward the docks. Some waved their hats in the air while others shouted happily. Children cried out happily as their dads returned from the deadly Bering Sea.

Sarah guided the Northwestern through the narrow channel and into the harbor. Down on the deck, the crew was talking and shouting excitedly.

Alex and Jake climbed out onto the bow. Jake stood on the very front of the boat and spread out his arms, pretending he could fly. Alex stood behind him and put his hands on his hips.

"I'm the king of the world!" shouted Jake, re-enacting the famous _Titanic_ scene.

Sarah laughed loudly and shook her head at the slightly disturbing sight. Andrew and Jon pretended to gag on the deck behind the wheelhouse. They leaned over the railing and shouted insults at the two other deckhands on the front of the boat.

"Don't judge!" yelled Jake, pretending to be upset.

Sarah was in tears she was laughing so hard. Just then they rounded the corner and pulled into Dutch Harbor. She reached up to grab the binoculars and peered through them at the dock up ahead. She smiled when she recognized her parents and the old Northwestern crew.

As they drew closer to the dock, cheers went up from the crew on deck as they too recognized the familiar faces of the Hansen's and the other crew members standing on the docks. Jake was shouting something at Matt Bradley and Alex was waving at Sig Hansen.

Sarah guided the Northwestern up against the dock while the deckhands scrambled to tie her down. Matt, Nick, and Edgar moved to help them tie down the lines on the dock.

"Hey I thought you all retired?" said Jake in a joking manner as he leapt onto the dock, "Watcha doin' tying down _our_ boat?"

Sig smacked Jake upside the head. Jake laughed and tried to duck out of the way of his next blow.

"Hey I still own it, you know," said Sig with a laugh.

Sarah climbed out of the wheelhouse and waved to her parents as she made her way towards the dock. She gave them both a hug and tried to answer their barrage of questions. When she got to the part about the storm and the massive rogue wave, everyone froze and listened, eyes wide with shock and horror.

"She got us through though," said Jake as he stepped up behind Sarah, giving her his full support, "We caught a ton of crab too. May even be a record-breaker season."

Sig nodded in approval and gave his niece a hug.

"Well I'm proud of you kiddo," he said as he looked down on her, pride and admiration shining in his blue eyes, "Looks like you're not going to be a greenhorn captain anymore."

Sarah's eyes lit up at the sound of that. Just then, the Maverick pulled into the harbor and began its slow crawl over to their section of the dock.

"Hey Hansens!" shouted Rick from the wheelhouse window as he skillfully maneuvered his boat into the docks.

Sig's jaw visibly tightened but he gritted his teeth and waved back. Edgar glanced over at his daughter to see her reaction. She was beaming and waving wildly at Rick, but froze when she noticed her parents looking at her.

Edgar rolled his eyes and ruffled her hair.

"Its okay, Sarah," he said giving her a loving look, "You're an adult now and you can make your own decisions."

Jack nodded in agreement as she watched the Maverick being tied up to the dock.

Sarah wondered what was going through her mother's mind. Blake Painter was the first man she had fallen in love with and he ended up being someone completely different than she had realized.

Just then, Jack gasped in shock and grabbed Edgar's arm. Sarah followed her mom's shocked and terrified stare.

Standing on the dock beside of the Maverick was Blake Painter, waiting to greet his son.

Edgar's entire body stiffened in anger and his flashing eyes revealed the depth of dislike he felt towards the man.

Sig also looked rather grim at the sight of his old enemy. Both the old and new Northwestern crews watched tensely as Rick climbed off the Maverick to greet his dad. The surprised look on his face told Sarah that he had not been expecting his dad to be there either.

The two men embraced in a hug. Rick glanced over his dad's shoulder and saw the shocked and surprised looks on the Northwestern crews' faces. He swallowed nervously and mumbled something to his dad. A few seconds later, Blake turned and gazed out at them.

Sarah saw her mom tense up in fear and cling onto Edgar a little tighter. Edgar muttered something into her ear to comfort her, never taking his eyes off of Blake.

Just then, the two men began to walk down the dock towards them. Instantly Sig, Edgar, Norman and Jake moved forward.

"Hey," said Rick, awkwardly as he approached them, "Um…I've been talking to my dad on the radio a lot while we were out fishing, and, uh, he has something he'd like to say."

Sarah narrowed her eyes and gave Rick a curious and confused look. Rick gave her a slight wink of encouragement before he turned his attention back to his dad.

Blake Painter had not changed much over the years. His blonde hair and blue eyes remained the same. He had a few more lines in his face but looked as fit and charming as ever. He took a deep breath and began to speak.

"Um, I understand that my son and your daughter are seeing each other," he said, addressing Edgar and Jack, "And I know we have a tainted past, but I was hoping that maybe for our children's sake, that we could let it go. I'd also like to say I'm sorry for what I did. Rick convinced me that the past is indeed the past and that we need to move on. He also managed to convince me that apologizing may be the best way to do just that. So, I'm sorry…I really am."

The sorrowful look in Blake's eyes confirmed that he truly meant what he said. He gazed at Edgar and Jack, shuffling his feet as he waited for their reply. Rick and Sarah exchanged nervous looks while they waited.

Suddenly, Jack nodded slowly.

"I agree."

The crews blinked and murmured in surprise. They had not expected Jack to be the first one to reply, much less to agree to what Blake had said. They gave her doubtful and uncertain looks.

She returned their stares with a determined and understanding look.

"He's right," she said, stepping forward, "The past is the past. It's high time we all move on with our lives, not just for our sake but for theirs."

Jack nodded towards Rick and Sarah. The two young captains looked nervous as everyone glanced briefly at them.

"So, Blake, I forgive you," continued Jack, "And I do hope we can move on."

Jack took another step forward and held out her hand. Edgar looked taken back by the scene and shook his head in disbelief. He hesitated for a moment, but stepped up behind his wife to support her.

Blake looked very surprised at Jack's response. He took her hand and shook it, his crooked grin spreading across his face. Edgar reached forward to shake his hand as well. The two men made eye-contact and nodded in silent understanding.

Rick looked overjoyed at the sight. He ran up to them and murmured something into Edgar's ear.

Edgar shook his head again in disbelief and gave Rick a bewildered look.

"You're just full of surprises aren't you?" he asked with a smile, "Yes, of course you can."

Sarah glanced at the other deckhands, wondering what was going on. She made eye-contact with Jake and gave him a questioning look. Jake shrugged his shoulders.

"Don't ask me," he muttered, "I'm as confused as you are!"

Just then, Rick sauntered over to her with a big, goofy grin on his face. Sarah was struck suddenly by the resemblance he had to his father. They had the same blonde hair, same blue eyes, and same wide, crooked smile.

Rick reached into his back pocket and pulled out a small box. He opened it up and went down on one knee.

"Sarah Hansen, will you marry me?"

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I'll post an epilogue asap!!


	19. Epilogue

Epilogue

Epilogue

Eleven years later…

Sarah was washing dishes in her house in Seattle, Washington. Rick was in the living room watching TV while their ten-year old son was playing the Alaskan Storm video game on his Xbox.

Sarah paused to watch their son. They had named him Jake after Jake Anderson, Sarah's best friend and deckhand on the Northwestern. Suddenly, Jake leapt up and let out a cry of victory.

"Yes!" he shouted, "Full pots! Man I'm good!"

Sarah rolled her eyes at his cockiness. He definitely got that from his grandfather, Blake Painter.

Just then, Jake ran into the room to tell his mom all about his latest great adventure on the "vast Bering Sea."

Sarah listened with a slightly amused expression on her face.

"And you know what else, Mom?"

"What honey?"

"I wanna be a crabber…just like you and dad. I'm gonna be the best captain that Dutch Harbor has ever seen!"

Sarah shook her head in amazement.

"I know you will honey…I know you will."

And so the saga continued…

**Thank you SOOOOOOOOOOOOO much to everyone who read/reviewed!**

**Your support was sooo helpful!!**

**I had a BLAST writing this story and the first one (Greenhorns and Rivals). **

**Snowymistyriver and I are co-writing a story about the Harris boys of the Cornelia Marie. It'll be called "Brother's Keeper" so keep an eye out for it!! **

**THANKS AGAIN!!**

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